If there is one thing that people in India know about Lawrence Bishnoi, they would cringe and start a debate at the same time.

They are of different opinions regarding him—some people think of him as a male factor motivated by the strong desire to protect his people and values, while others recognise him as the leader of the gang.

But let’s face the facts: Today, can a man who masterminds massacres and is affiliated with an organised criminal group be called a patriot? Or is this simply an attempt to hide his aggression?

It is time we went deeper and saw what the life and times of Lawrence Bishnoi look like by getting past the myth into reality.

Lawrence Bishnoi originally comes from Punjab; he belongs to a rich, unaffected royal Rajput family. A Bishnoi, a branch of eco-activist extraordinaire and strict religious believer, Lawrence was not very different from any young man with dreams and goals. But for his part, Jagdish’s life changed during his college years when he joined politics in Chandigarh, from which he started his criminal life.

Stating politics, as is often the case and a beginning to future political careers, results in Bishnoi’s entry into this negative phase. So he gets used to power struggles, disputes, and even violence soon enough. By the time he was just 26, he left the limelight of being a student leader and was recognised as one of the most lethal dons in North India. Today the charges against Bishnoi are murder, extortion, and even planning to carry out assassinations of Bollywood stars like Salman Khan.

When the media covers Lawrence Bishnoi, they sometimes describe him as a ‘patriot’ because he is an embodiment of a man fighting for his community’s dignity and fending off the so-called ‘intruders’. However, from his mouth, he has said they kill because they want to defend their people and their culture. The one that went viral for the attempt to murder Salman Khan was said to be enraged due to his involvement in hunting blackbuck, which is purely forbidden for the Bishnoi sect.

Lawrence Bishnoi, a well-known criminal, is not a hero or patriot, as he is a ruthless criminal mastermind who operates from behind bars. His gang has been involved in organised crime, extortion, and gang wars, targeting civilians and individuals in their path. Bishnoi's most high-profile criminality was his link with the murder of Punjabi singer Sidhu Moosewala. Despite his claims of being the "protector," his actions have fostered a climate of terror in the areas they operate in.

Public culture often glamorises gangsters as rebels or antiheroes, but it is important to remember that these individuals benefit from violence, intimidation, and extortion, and their actions hurt the people they claim to protect.

In conclusion, Bishnoi is not a hero or patriot but a bandit who uses his community's value system to achieve his personal ends. It is time for individuals to expose these criminals and stop putting them on a pedestal. Glorifying figures like Bishnoi sends a dangerous message that crime is justified under the pretext of nationalism or defending a particular culture.

Let’s face the facts. Lawrence Bishnoi, irrespective of the stories associated with him, is a criminal who loves violence and operates through threats. There is no honour in that. We cannot even talk about patriotism when you are a group of people who terrorise your citizens. We must reject the idea that his actions are justified and recognise him for what he truly is: a menace to society.